privilege

The three chief concerns to be addressed if communications are to be protected by the attorney-client privilege: between whom are communications protected; whether the communication is the type to which the privilege could apply; and whether the communication is made in confidence.

In 2010 the European Court of Justice (ECJ) rendered a major decision that has since been the subject of extensive discussions (Akzo Nobel Chemicals Ltd and Akcros Chemicals Ltd v. European Commission).

There was a time when maintaining legal privilege in attorney-client communications was somewhat easy: communications were either oral or written by exchanging letters directed to a specific recipient at a physical address.

Under most common law theories of evidence, legal privilege can be broadly defined as the right to refuse to disclose, or to prevent another person from disclosing, confidential information exchanged between a client and his or her attorney.